New Wright State baseball coach upbeat despite team’s youth

The Wright State baseball team had a program-record five players selected in Major League Baseball’s 2016 draft. That’s a cause for celebration, of course. But it also means first-year coach Jeff Mercer is dealing with some major turnover going into his maiden season.

The biggest voids were left by catcher Sean Murphy and shortstop Mitchell Roman. The aim of every team is to be strong up the middle, and Murphy (an Oakland Athletics third-round pick) and Roman (a Chicago White Sox 12th-rounder) excelled in the field while helping the Raiders win the Horizon League and reach the NCAA tournament the last two years.

“The defense of a high-level catcher and high-level shortstop is hard to replace,” Mercer said when asked which players he misses most. “The defensive radius, the outs, how they shrink the field, the things they do — those two are 1A and 1B.

“But I like the guys we’ve got there right now. They’re competitive guys who have worked hard and put in their time. (Catcher) Brandon Giltrow and (shortstop) Kevin Whatley will go out and show what they’re made of.”

The abundance of gifted young players is why Mercer is optimistic — and the reason the league coaches have made the Raiders the overwhelming favorites to repeat as champions.

Wright State will have another strong pitching staff anchored by senior Trevor Swaney, a second-team all-league pick last season, and sophomore Caleb Sampen, the 2016 conference freshman of the year.

Sophomore outfielder J.D. Orr, who made the NCAA All-Regional team, is back. But sophomore outfielder Peyton Burdick, a second-team all-conference selection, has been lost for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

“I look at the roster right now, and we are talented. It’s just that they’re freshmen and sophomores,” Mercer said. “We’ve got to get out there and play, and I’ve got to get them experience and put them in big environments — just like those guys who were great players last year.”

The Raiders set a program record for wins while going 46-17 last season. They beat Western Michigan and Ohio State in the NCAA regionals before being eliminated by host Louisville.

Mercer is well aware of the rich history of the program. He was a two-time All-Horizon League pick for the Raiders and conference player of the year in 2009. He also was an assistant for three years before being promoted.

He credits predecessors Ron Nischwitz, Rob Cooper and Greg Lovelady for developing a winning culture. Most of the current players may not be battle-tested, but they know what’s expected of them.

“They hold themselves to that standard. Sure, we have to guide them a little bit, but at this point, it kind of runs itself. And I just have to get out of the way,” Mercer said.

“They’re going to grow and develop. They’re a very, very competitive group. They play hard. That’s the one thing I can tell you for sure — we’ll be competitive.”

The Raiders begin the regular season today with the opener of a three-game series at nationally ranked Clemson. They’ll play 12 games in the South before their home opener March 10, against Western Illinois.

While starting out with a heavy dose of road games may not be ideal, Mercer isn’t one to complain about the challenges faced by northern schools in dealing with cold weather.

“I’ll say this: It is what you make it, right?” he said. “We have turf and beautiful facilities, so we can get outside and do a lot of things. If you think it’s going to be a problem, it’ll be a problem. If you think you’re ready to go, then most of the time you are.

“We’ve been outside a bunch. We’re prepared. We’re ready to go. There are no excuses. If you drop a pop fly, you drop a pop fly. It’s not because you’ve been inside or outside. It’s because you didn’t communicate and make the play.”

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